The popularity of mobile devices has had some unintended and sometimes deadly consequences. An alarming number of traffic accidents are linked to distracted driving, including use of mobile devices while driving, resulting in injury and loss of life. The National Safety Council reports that cell phone use while driving leads to 1.6 million crashes each year. Nearly 330,000 injuries occur each year from accidents caused by texting while driving. 1 out of every 4 car accidents in the United States is caused by texting and driving.
One of the main reasons why people continue to use cell phones or mobile devices while driving is that they have they lack self-restraint. The term “mobile device” and “cell phone” will be used interchangeably throughout this application. People know that operating a motor vehicle while driving and texting or using a mobile device is dangerous. However, despite this fact people still text and use other distracting functions of a mobile phone while driving.
Texting while driving is further exacerbated with younger or inexperienced drivers. For example, teenagers that are now learning to drive do not understand how distracted they may be when using a mobile device while driving. Even though their parents or guardians may warn them of the dangers of operating a motor vehicle and using a mobile device, younger drivers, or teenagers still use the distracting functions of mobile devices while driving.
The prior art discloses different ways for preventing operating a motor vehicle while using a mobile device. However, many of the methods disclosed by the prior art are complex. For example, one application requires a user to take a responsive test to determine if a person is operating a motor vehicle while driving. Another application uses complex algorithms and hardware to determine if a mobile device is proximate to or in the driver's seat. However, the above examples are complex and relatively inefficient.
As a result, there exists a need for improvements over the prior art and more particularly for a more efficient way of preventing operation of a motor vehicle while using the distracting functions of a mobile device.